Metallic Beauty
by Aoshi'sgirlinstraightjacket
Summary: Revised. Aoshi is assigned a young girl to study for his phsycology class. She's lost the use of her legs and is mute. Even though her disabilities prevent it, they still fall in love. But how can the poor girl overcome her hatred for others?
1. Chapter 1

Hey!! About this fanfic...I have no medical experience what-so-ever. If you do, and you find something that is completely wrong, you can tell me about it, or you can ignore it because you are aware that I don't know what I'm talking about. It's just meant to be a "good" story. It will be an AU and in a different setting than Japan. Mainly because I don't know a lot about Japan and if I don't know what I'm writing about then, chances are, I shouldn't write it.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Aoshi Shinomori walked down the hall of the Institute for Dramatized Individuals (IDI) with a nurse. For a college assignment in psychology, him and other students were assigned patients in the hospital to study and possibly help. The only other person on this assignment that he knew was Kenshin, which was always a delight (sarcasm). The nurse led him further down the hall to room 210. She checked the clipboard on the door before turning back to Aoshi.

"This is one of our healthier patients. There are only two things seriously wrong with her. One she is mute. She has cut off all communications with everyone she has encountered. Two, she has uncontrolled belemia. Aoshi cocked an eyebrow.

"Uncontrolled?" The nurse nodded as she opened the door.

"She's had a few traumatic experiences." Aoshi wanted to say more but the nurse walked in and was now standing in front of an young woman. "Mr. Shinomori, this is Misao Mackimachi." The girl just stared at him giving him a pretty picture of her features. Although, her eyes weren't so friendly. They were a striking green that sat wide on her face and pierced through him.

Misao jerked her head slightly to the side and the nurse rushed out of the room. Aoshi wasn't even sure if she moved. The nurse was just scared of her.

'She can't be that bad.' Aoshi thought as he sunk down into a chair opposite the bed. He glanced down at the clipboard the nurse had **thrown** at him.

Name: Misao Mackimachi

DOB: October 23, 1991

Town: Mineral Springs State: Arkansas

Aoshi snorted. 'No wonder she's mute. She probably talks like a hick.' He went on to read about her mental and physical problems. Family medical history etc. etc...

He stopped reading and looked around the room, trying to avoid the girl in front of him. That is until he got pegged in the head with a paper ball. He looked down at the offending thing on his lap and then opened it.

"_I am literate." _It said simply. His eye brows raised at the note. He took out a pen and started scribbling on the page.

"_I thought you had cut off all types of communication. I think this __**just might**__ be considered that." _He crumpled the sheet and threw it back at her. He watched her as she read the note and rolled her eyes. The paper ball was soon thrown back to him.

"_That's only to family and people I don't like. You know, I'm mute. Not deaf. You can __**talk**__ to me."_ Aoshi growled.

"Whatever." The girl smirked. She grabbed a new sheet of paper and started writing on it. He walked over to her and looked at the paper.

"_Name?" _

"Aoshi Shinomori." He felt weird. It was like talking to himself, except with a mute girl.

"_Misao Mackimachi." _Aoshi read the paper and then leaned back in the chair.

"Yeah. I know. We've already exchanged names. Remember the paranoid nurse that ran out of the room?" Misao glared at him and scribbled on the paper.

"_Whatever. So what are you doing here anyway?" _

"I'm here for my psychology class. We're here to study the patients and hopefully find a cure." Miso snorted. Her hand flew over the paper.

"_Some of us don't want help."_ Aoshi cocked an eyebrow.

"Do you want help?" Misao looked down at her lap. Her hand loosely gripped the pencil, hovering over a blank spot.

"_It's better this way."_ it said simply. Aoshi sighed. Would he still get a good grade if the girl was stubborn?

"Okay. Well, let's start with what happened. How did you end up this way? Mute and stomach issues. Is it all in your head or is it something more physical?" He clipped a piece of paper to the clipboard and waited for an answer. Miso once again sat motionless.

Once again stubborn.

Aoshi waited in case she was just trying to word the story. But after a while, he figured she just didn't want to "talk".

"Look. The only way I can help you (and get a good grade) is if I know what happened and how you got this way. So give me something." he said desperately. The assignment would be over in two months. That wasn't a lot of time to jack around.

He was ready to give up when Misao slowly started putting words to paper. Soon half the page was covered in her scrawled writing. She handed the page to Aoshi.

"_A few months ago, I was walking home from a friends house. Some drunk man ran me over and then took off. The exhaust pipe came close to my face. When I inhaled the fumes, it burned my throat all the way down to my stomach. Now every time I try to eat, I throw up because it irritates the burns. The doctors told me that I shouldn't try to talk either. They don't know how it's affected my body." _Aoshi put the paper down on his lap and stared at it. He hadn't heard of anything like this. He pitied the poor thing.

He turned his head when he heard growl.

(Okay, I know. If you can't talk how can you make noises from your throat? It's stupid but it's my fanfic. And it's easier that way. If you want to comment fine but I'm gonna think your stupid for it.)

She etched away on the paper and then forced it towards him.

"_Don't act like that and don't make those faces. I don't want your pity. You can try to help me if you want to but from now on just be normal and talk to me." _she smiled when he looked up from the paper. Her bright blue eyes sparkled from under her long lashes. Aoshi chuckled.

"Alright. What do you want to talk about?" Misao lit up and brought out mounds of paper to write on.

_fin_

Okay so that's the first chapter. I started writing this a long time ago on my personal computer and am just now getting this on fanfiction. If you like it and want me to continue, review. If you think it needs revising, review. If you don't think at all, review. Are you getting the picture here?


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Two people sat in the room, yet the room was silent. One chose not to talk, the other was comfortable with it.

The window was open and the wind blew in, making the room smell like early spring. Birds chirped their cheery songs making the bed-ridden girl wish she was them. The male wished someone would just shut the damn window.

Despite their apparent differences, the two had become fairly comfortable with each other. Their was only one thing the did agree on; silence and privacy. They didn't delve into each other's lives, mainly because they didn't talk a lot. But sometimes they did.

Aoshi was working on a psychology paper and Misao was staring out the window with a laptop on her lap.

Aoshi's eyes shot up from the page when he heard nails clicking against keys. She had been rather "talkative" today this morning. The risk of carpel tunnel made Misao switch to typing, which was faster for her.

Aoshi peeked over the side of the bed at the computer screen.

"_What are you doing?"_ she asked.

"Working on you. The same thing I was doing the last time you asked me." he sighed. The clicks sounded again.

"_Sorry. I'm trying to keep my mind occupied."_ Misao frowned as she typed. She was on the edge and had been for the past week. Nurses made her jumpy and doctors made her clench her fists in fear.

"I can imagine." Aoshi said, leaning on the bed. "I won't see you until next Thursday and by then you'll have new legs."

Misao glanced at the flat covers where her legs were supposed to be. Her quilt reached her stomach, covering her hips down to mid-thigh. Her legs stopped there.

Aoshi followed her look. He had never gotten the chance to see her severed limbs. He wasn't allowed to since she was uncomfortable with it. It was the rules of the assignment.

The fast clicking brought him out of his thoughts and back to his project.

"_Then we'll spend more time in physical therapy then in here."_

He was about to reply but the click of the door opening made his head jerk up.

"What? It's not time for the nurses to come in." He said. It wasn't lunch and it wasn't time for Misao to take any medicine...what little medicine she took.

Bustling and loud chatter came for the door entrance and it wasn't until they rounded the bathroom corner that Aoshi finally got a glimpse of them.

He heard the laptop slam shut beside him and turned his head to face a shaking and red Misao. Her hands were clenched into fists, showing white knuckles under her thin, pale skin.

Aoshi stood up and approached the people who were now standing in front of the people smiling huge, disgusting smiles.

"I'm sorry. No one can see Misao except family." he said politely.

A man glanced at him and scowled.

"We are her family. Aunts, uncles, and cousins." he said gesturing to the other adults and the children. "And who are you? You're not family."

Aoshi fought down a growl. "No I'm not. I'm a psychology student and am here to help Misao."

"Don't you need permission from family to do that?" the squat man asked.

Aoshi shook his head. "Only permission from the hospital."

The man shrugged and turned his attention away when the woman beside him pinched his arm.

"Miruki...we need to hurry up. I have an appointment with the hairdresser in twenty minutes." Her voice was deep and surly. Not at all very attractive.

"Of course dear." He pulled out a stack of papers and went to the other side of the bed. He inclined the papers and lowered his voice so that Aoshi couldn't hear what he was saying.

Misao still held her defiant look. Aoshi wondered what she would do if she actually could get up and get a hold of these people. His answer was in the form of her bodily rage. Her hands clenched and unclenched at her sides and she shifted restlessly. Her eyes finally grew wide and she gripped the laptop and swung it at the man's face.

Aoshi, almost cursing, grabbed Misao's arms and pulled the computer from her hands. "I think it's time for you to leave." he said. "Misao shouldn't be distressed and whatever you are proposing to her more than likely shouldn't be handled without a lawyer." his strict, demanding voice made the visitors rigid but they stood there, staring at the short man.

"Fine." he said. He glared at Aoshi will signaling for everyone to leave. "I'll be back later."

"I'll make sure you don't get past the front door." Aoshi replied icily. The door slammed all the while Aoshi was glaring a hole through it. His hand still gripped Misao's wrist and he turned as he felt a weight lean on him.

Misao had tears pouring down her face and she was hugging his arm. Aoshi bent down and tilted her chin up.

"I take it those are bad people." he said gently. She partially hid her face and nodded. "Okay, come here." he said. He sat on the bed and lifted her onto his lap.

Before the quilt could slide off her waist she grabbed it and pulled it up to her chest as she allowed herself to be rocked in his arms.

"It's going to be nice once you get those new legs." he said. Her head rubbed against his chest as she nodded.

He felt the weight of her bony hips on his thigh and then the lack from her long lost legs. He could only imagine the way she must feel...and then all this drama following her.

"They won't get back in. I promise." he leaned against the head board and pressed her head against his chest with one hand as he wrapped the other around her side. "Ever."

So that's the second chapter. Kind of a tear jerker. Oh well. The next chapter will be up...sometime. I don't know when though. Just be looking for it. Okay? In the mean time, review!

Sincerely, _straightjacket_


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